Buffalo Christmas Wishes is back — and this year, the holiday gift-giving drive expects to be bigger than ever as it gears up to benefit students at Enterprise Charter School and Our Lady of Hope Home School at St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy. A fundraiser to help kick off the 2014 drive will take place November 12 at Resurgence Brewing Company.

Buffalo Christmas Wishes helps provide gifts to families and children in need in our community by collecting, wrapping, and delivering to them donated gifts that match their personal wish lists. The popular program has been rekindled by The Little Match Girl Foundation Ltd., the nonprofit formed earlier this year by Buffalo attorney Brian R. Biggie. Mr. Biggie, a partner in the law firm Goldberg Segalla LLP, originally founded the Buffalo Christmas Wishes drive in 2005 and organized it each year through 2010.

In early November, students at Enterprise Charter School and Our Lady of Hope Home School will be listed along with their top-three gift wishes for the 2014 holiday season. Once the list is available, participants can pick a student to “adopt.” The organization encourages participants to spend at least $25 on their student. For those who need additional ideas for gifts, click herefor a list of recommended books by grade level, and help support the schools’ emphasis on increasing reading proficiency.

Unwrapped gifts will be accepted through December 15 by the Little Match Girl Foundation at the offices of Goldberg Segalla, located at 665 Main Street, Suite 400, Buffalo, NY 14203. Donations of wrapping paper, tape, and bows also are welcome. Volunteers from the Little Match Girl Foundation and Goldberg Segalla will then wrap the gifts and ensure their delivery to the students in time for Christmas.

The foundation is also collecting donations of general supplies for St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy. Please see the Buffalo Christmas Wishes page for a list of the most-needed items.

“All of us at the Little Match Girl Foundation and Goldberg Segalla are thrilled for the chance to help some of Buffalo’s neediest children experience the joys of the holiday season that many of us take for granted,” Mr. Biggie said. “We are also very excited for the kickoff event at Resurgence, which promises to be a fun way for people to get together and make a difference in kids’ lives. Western New York is such a generous community — we know from past experience with Buffalo Christmas Wishes that many will step up to help give these deserving children a holiday to remember.”

$30 tax-deductible donation includes two drink tickets, a tour of the facility, and a special tasting. Click here to RSVP by November 10. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

Laptops will be available for participants to pick a student in the Buffalo Christmas Wishes program. All proceeds collected at this event will support the 2014 Buffalo Christmas Wishes campaign.

About The Little Match Girl FoundationThe Little Match Girl Foundation Ltd. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the principle that every child deserves the opportunity to experience the joy, wonder, and optimism of youth that many of us take for granted. Inspired by the classic Hans Christian Andersen short story of the same name, the Little Match Girl Foundation focuses on helping those children most in need by collecting and providing them with school supplies, essential seasonal items, holiday gifts, and other donations in collaboration with their schools and other community organizations.

Founded in May 2014 in Buffalo, New York, the organization’s roots trace back to an annual holiday gift-giving program begun there in 2005. It has grown to encompass efforts in Philadelphia, Chicago, and other cities, with the goal of positively impacting the lives of as many children as possible in an ever-expanding network of community partnerships. The Little Match Girl Foundation’s 501(c)(3) nonprofit status is currently pending.